Dr. Andreo Spina on Re-Learning to Use Your Body (Functional Range Conditioning Interview)

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Dr. Andreo Spina is an expert on the human body, as evidenced by his many accolades and certifications, as well as the results he gets with his clients. In this interview, he and Ryan talk about the human body, and how people can learn to use their bodies better, even in our sedentary world.
You can see more of his videos and techniques on his channel: / @drandreospina
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We really hope you found this video useful. Please leave a comment if you have any questions at all. We'll do our best to help.

[@MrAnarchoVeg]

The bit about not forcing your own goals onto your clients is pure gold

[@gmbfit]

Craig Plunkett Yeah, that's a huge one! Really glad to hear somebody else saying it.

[@FitnessFAQs]

Fantastic post !!!

[@gmbfit]

FitnessFAQs Thanks man!

[@XTheSpartanX7]

"if you can't do it unloaded, adding weight to it is a dumb idea" - So simple, but so true.

[@erikowings6729]

I agree with what he is saying about the morning routine. I learned a great joint rotation routine from a Pavel Tsatsouline book over 15 years ago and have stayed doing it everyday. Meditation, joint mobility, and nice walk start my day everyday. As the day goes on the activity gets more intense and my body is always ready to go. I'm 37 years old and feel better than when I was 17. I think the key to staying healthy is what you are talking about here. Move correctly and move frequently. Thanks for the great video!

[@fret999]

I really enjoyed this podcast. Thanks Ryan and GMB for sharing this stuff with us. Two thoughts: 1) At one point in the podcast, Dr. Spira questions the popularity of handstands. I wonder if the answer is really simple - they are tremendous fun and they look great! I think Dr. Spira was questioning the skill transfer to other movements, but I suggest that it's good for us to practice skills we find fun, just for the sake of fun. Thanks to you Ryan for getting me hooked on handstands! 2) I have noticed in many of the GMB podcasts that you seem to like making fun of stupid questions/comments that you get from clients. I'm sure that's not your intention - or is it? To me it comes across as a bit highfalutin. Just my $0.02. Anyways, thanks for what you guys do!

[@gmbfit]

fret999 Sometimes, we falut. We don't take ourselves seriously around here, and we expect our clients to be able to poke fun at themselves too sometimes. We spend pretty much ALL our time helping people; it's our job. Do we always communicate perfectly? No. But I think the sheer volume of free information we produce should be enough to excuse any perceived poking fun. As for handstands, they're great fun, but they aren't the most important thing all people should be focused on. If you like them and they fit your needs and goals, they can be a fantastic practice though. Thanks for chiming in.

[@petriborg68]

and i will share the video here and there.

[@imranesmail23]

I don't normally bring up religion. But what I'm hearing is just so cool! It's basically common sense. but we are so distant we can't see answers in simplicity. we need this rigorous scientific method, which keeps us rigid and inflexible, not open to new ways of seeing things. Just going back to when you guys were talking about waking up with a daily routine of motion and movement. It just makes me think of Islam. One goal muslim strive towards is to pray our 5 daily prayers, with the first prayer at sunrise, or if you can't, when you get up. But the ritual of prayer, is going through certain movements; standing, bending, raising arms, sitting, placing arms on ground, touching head to ground. On top of the religious aspect, of going threw specific prayers and the hope of self reflection. There just seems like a lot of overlap here and I love it. I would love to here your thoughts on the positions and movements of the actual prayer. There are some who try to prefect it, others are not aware. Thanks for the awesome video !!

[@gmbfit]

Glad you like the video Imran! Performing a morning ritual is wonderful. For some people it is stretching and moving around and for youself it involves prayer. Whatever drives you to stay present and mindful is not going to be a bad thing :)

[@christopherweber8907]

I have really enjoyed listening to the gmb show this year (as I just found out about it this year) and this is one of my favorite episodes. So much of what is talked about here is so basic that it seems we often miss it or forget about it - especially his definition of a joint. We need to be reminded of basics. That has been really helpful in urging me to slow down and look at whether or not the way I move has actually been healthy or problematic, as I'm finding my hand and wrist are having issues from frequent typing. This was my first introduction to Dr. Spina and have really enjoyed his other videos on KZbin. It is great that you connect with so many other people and resources. Thanks.

[@sergihs7088]

What an increbile conversation... Thank you very much for sharing this!

[@iamfever]

Im down with Spina! Quality layer to the knowledge cake!

[@parveezsaligh9248]

Loving the nitty gritty of the subject and how you dig into it. appreciate it.

[@achso18]

OMG, one of the best Fitness Skill Shows. So true. Could have listened to Doc Spina for another hour! Thanks GMB!

[@gmbfit]

Achim Geisler Glad you liked it!

[@MrAnarchoVeg]

Loved this post. So great to hear from someone who doesn't just dish out tired cliches about training and lifestyle

[@theanywhereworkout]

Found your interview while searching KZbin for "exercises anyone can do anywhere." Really glad to find you both!

[@gmbfit]

The Anywhere Workout Thanks! Glad you enjoyed the interview. Let us know if there's anything we can help you with.

[@HaydenGladstonePT]

Man, that was so good. Such a wealth of knowledge and a great speaker

[@gmbfit]

+Hayden Gladstone Glad you enjoyed it. Now go put all the good info to use :)

[@patrickvanmeter2922]

This is one of the best GMB has done. Spina is easy to understand and easy to listen to. Really enjoyed this. Thanks GMB

[@gmbfit]

Patrick van meter Thanks Patrick! He's definitely very good at explaining these concepts in a useful way.

[@Arvyfit]

One of the best video I have ever seen, fantastic! Thank you!

[@womyn444]

More brilliant moment-by-moment, from start to finish. Stupendous conversation.

[@jonask.459]

Best Video ever. Hands down. I already watch a lot of GMB stuff, recently registered to your page as well. I am instantly doing the same for Spina. Amazing listening to you too.

[@gmbfit]

+Jonas K. Thanks!

[@alexandrosk.6100]

Some reaally good info here! Also this video introduced me to Dr. Spina and his videos which are really helpful too! Even your recommendations on people and products (like Dr. Spina, Al kavadlo and Headspace) are spot on! Just... thanks...!!

[@hardlightme]

I think this is great common sense (with advanced insights) for how we move every day. "Functional Range Release" and "Functional Anatomic Palpation" genius, Doc Andreo Spina with GMB's Ryan Hurst. Hint: move your joints!

[@gmbfit]

Tom Chaffer Yes, it makes great intuitive sense when Dr. Spina breaks it down. The best teachers are able to make even complex things seem simple. Glad you enjoyed it, Tom.

[@zbyh1980]

a must watch video for all cross-fitters, especially beginners.

[@XxChipsxX]

Really awesome stuff. Really important conversation. Well done.

[@NEILMCTCOACHING]

First time watching this right through. Great stuff.

[@jabbingiglio100]

This is amazing. Ive been able to view some of his very short videos on instagram but it was awesome to hear him expand on his movement thoughts.

[@gmbfit]

jordan giglio You should follow his channel here on YT as well: kzbin.info/door/V2W3taFgCPvz3hhcque_ow

[@lgp6344]

These guys have a great vibe! Awesome video!

[@gmbfit]

Thanks!

[@applezz13]

AWESOME!

[@thomaskishmanii2675]

Look at farmers in small towns they lift more than some of these young people. (The older generation) Newton’s Law: Objects in motion tend to remain in motion. Great video.

[@crawlproject]

This is so great. Thank you for another great podcast

[@MrAnarchoVeg]

To me there is this massive elephant in the room for those of us who want to be some kind of fitpro in the future: How do we balance what clients need, vs what they want? We all have bills to pay, so the latter definitely matters as much as the former. The prospects of a client swallowing your news that they're 10+ prepatory steps away from doing the things they're excited to do, are slim to none. They're gonna go to the Kevin that lets them do what they want. How do we navigate this prickly matter?

[@gmbfit]

This is pretty late to reply... sorry. Coaching is hard. A lot of times, the most important thing is to focus the client's attention on the very next step. If you're talking about ten steps they have to get through before they can do the other thing down the road, you're just confusing them and frustrating them. Instead, you should focus on smaller, more achievable steps and encourage them to work where they're at. Celebrate progress. Somebody really smart once said you compare yourself to who your used to be rather than who you wish to be. We should help our clients do that.

[@MrAnarchoVeg]

I was just trying to use an extreme example to get the point across, I agree that actually talking about it to a client in that way would be really negative. Well, better late than never chaps, many thanks. Still a fan of your work.

[@gmbfit]

Craig Plunkett Totally. It's a difficult challenge we all have to deal with :)

[@michaelbarentine1217]

I had heard that McDonald's coffee example used a bunch of times growing up. Looking at the lawsuit might change your perspective on the story. Your analogy was correct, but just thought it'd be interesting to point out.

[@renman8925]

Because during the interview it was stated that the only way to keep a joint healthy was to move it, hence the question

[@jesseakister6366]

Awesome conversation.

[@gmbfit]

+Jesse Akister Thanks! It really was a pleasure to interview Dr. Spina.

[@philwindsor2884]

You are both awesome! This confirms what I've been thinking and playing with after doing a couple of months of your FF Course (Focused Flexibility - this is also awesome I've never been so loose, still some areas to work on but made me realise how I should feel and move). I'm Trying to get back to basics and give myself solid wrist and ankles to protect my movements and taking my time with it. I'm seeing gains already and feel strong in my movements. I think I now need to do the same for the other joins up the Kinetic Chain. Cheers All :D

[@gmbfit]

Phil Windsor Thanks, Phil! Glad you're loving FF and working on those basics - keep me posted :)

[@albertZweistein747]

Totally mind-blowing and true and the solution to pretty much all of our problems of mankind and our societies of today! I'm not sure about one thing though, but it was probably not meant that way either. I totally agree on that handstand thing - you don't want to put a certain load on something that isn't prepared at all. But "being prepared" comes through movement, too! - Hm, I don't want this to sound contradictory at all - let's take all the stretching thing, I actually think that stretching isn't something that should be done in isolation. I always hated stretching and I guess pretty much everyone hates stretching. I think stretching happens through movement, "natural" movement! And I think the same happens for the health of joints. I'm sure nobody thinks they shouldn't move at all because their joints don't have the prerequisites...... I hope you get what I'm trying to say. :-) Great talk anyways.

[@gmbfit]

I can't speak for Dr. Spina, but it's important to realize that we're talking about some pretty complex and context-dependent issues here. Everyone can have an opinion based on principles that sound/feel right to them, but that's not nearly the same thing as an actual method for solving problems. These are methods borne out by research and lots of experience in treating patients and training athletes - the ideas don't make great soundbites, but they work *when applied* to specific situations. Movement is great, but anyone saying you can just move and all your problems will vanish is dangerous. There is a time a place for isolation and regression.

[@albertZweistein747]

Of course! As I said, I didn't want that to sound contradictory at all. Not moving leads to certain unhealthy conditions (a lot of them, actually), and moving can "heal" many of them. But of course, in certain circumstances, you will want to see a physical therapist. I'm just pointing out that with that limited wrist mobility he showed, of course you don't want to do a handstand for a start, but simply performing some much more basical movements (all by yourself) will improve the situation for many people.

[@dradrawe]

Really interesting, thank you !

[@alfred3116]

Hi Dr. Spina, have you heard Functional Patterns training. Your work holds similar concepts. You also remind me a little of Naudi Aguilar!...

[@marcohatley4992]

nice interview!

[@petriborg68]

This was great, you got a sign up.

[@gmbfit]

Thanks! Much appreciated :)

[@Mohamed-bm6yk]

If your knowledge spread for free in a comprehensible way a lot of peoplesuffer from depression will cure

[@t.8936]

I thought that the more you used your joints and worked your cartilage the more likely to break down. What about all these joint replacements? Hip, knee. Why does this happen then? Lack of use? Genuine question.

[@gmbfit]

Genuine answer: there's a lot of reasons for physical degeneration, and the body is more complex than a simple machine. Though there is such a thing as 'overuse,' it's not really a mechanical issue like friction. Using your body is good for your body. Joint replacements are also complex, but I'd wager that very few of them are caused by consistent exercise.

[@albertZweistein747]

And - sorry, can't resist :-) - tooth brushes weren't part of the evolutionary process either :-) (I'm just saying because of that example close to the end.... and we all do lose our teeth despite brushing - I personally suspect sugar to lead to that, and isolated sugar wasn't part of the evolutionary process either.... using you teeth means chewing - not brushing :-) ) Totally love the shoes and splits examples though :-) Again, this isn't criticism, just an observation and addition....

[@gmbfit]

Many people do not lose their teeth.

[@albertZweistein747]

Right, of course..... given that having 28 teeth means "no teeth loss", a mean tooth presence rate of about 25 in well-educated, non-poor people means three got lost! And that still doesn't say anything about the remaining teeth. (www.nidcr.nih.gov/DataStatistics/FindDataByTopic/ToothLoss/ToothLossAdults20to64.htm) I have been personally concerned with this topic, due to tooth and gum decay diagnoses. That's why I've tried to find out as much as possible about this topic, in order to heal my issues! That's why that tiny "misstep" of Spina (whose work and all the public information he produces I respect highly) mentioning tooth brushing, whereas the rest of the time he talks about what we're adapted to through evolution, made me smile. I'm pretty convinced that it's not the cleaning that keeps teeth healthy, it must be something else. As a first step, I have eliminated sugar from my diet, to a high degree. And I hope it's a helpful first step. It certainly is, regarding overall health.

[@gmbfit]

Sure, there's lots of things we aren't experts on. Dr. Spina will say the same of himself, I'd guess.

[@albertZweistein747]

My quest is for truth! I love what Dr. Spina says. There are other things that it can be applied to also.

[@darren9194]

When is the stretching podcast with Dr Andreo Spina coming out ? 🙊😏

[@gmbfit]

Maybe this can hold you over : gmb.io/dynamic-stretching-for-flexibility/

[@darren9194]

@@gmbfit Thanks a lot 😋

[@renman8925]

Hi, I suffer from Hallus Rigidus and I don't have any cartilage left between the joint, my Podiatrist has advised that I keep the joint immobile would you agree with this?

[@gmbfit]

ren man Why would a guy on the internet disagree with a medical professional who has examined you in person?

[@renman8925]

Because during the interview it was stated that the only way to keep a joint healthy is to move it, hence the question

[@gmbfit]

ren man That's a principle, but there's two problems with what you're asking: 1. Keeping a healthy joint healthy is not the same as curing a diseased/injured joint 2. Whatever we say, it's not medical advice, and it may or may not apply in your situation; we can't make a diagnosis from a KZbin comment. So, yeah, movement is great, but you're dealing with a situation that's outside the scope of what we can advise.

[@leoncomino4638]

what martial arts does Dr Spina do?

[@gmbfit]

I believe I heard BJJ, but I could easily be mistaken.

[@Ompasikom]

Please stop saying sh*t about the McDonalds coffee thing. The person did NOT sue because the coffee was hot. She asked simply for McDonalds for help with the hospital bills for her skin grafts from a McDonald's coffee. Skin grafts? How cold hot coffee lead to skin grafts? Because it's not hot coffee, it's BOILING hot coffee. The person, a grandmother, asked for McDonalds for help, and McDonalds said no, as it did with the other 700+ people who also got burned. When 700+ people are burned by their boiling hot coffee, perhaps, maybe, the fault lies with them, not the regular people,

[@gmbfit]

Oskar Denis Baharudin Is this really the one insight you took away from a 48 minute talk? If so, you need to pull your head out of your ass. You're on KZbin writing a long, indignant comment about a tertiary example given in a discussion full of valuable information. Is this really the best use of your time and energy?

[@Ompasikom]

GMB Fitness First, I apologize for the "long, indignant comment." I guess I should have stated that the talk was very good, except for that one thing. It grated like a pebble getting into your shoe when you're hiking. Second, look at it this way, if you're too ignorant of the facts of that case, how ignorant are you at other things that you think you are so, so, very sure of? Or, if you're too careless to look up the real facts of that case, how careless are you with other facts that you purport to know very intimately?

[@gmbfit]

No single human on Earth is capable of looking up every fact related to every belief they hold. If that's your expectation, you're fooling yourself about a lot of how life works. If you think we are ignorant about our subject matter, I urge you not to watch our videos. I'll wrap this up by saying that I am ignorant of many things. I'm no guru, so it's not my job to know everything or to have all the answers. You're not coming to this video for an opinion on legal interpretation - you're here to learn how to use your body better. And for that purpose, you're in the right place. On other matters, I may well be hopelessly deluded.

[@Ompasikom]

GMB Fitness Yes, you're right. On learning how to use your body better, you're the master. Which is why I was watching your video, to learn how to use my body better. On other matters, you may well be hopelessly deluded. Again, you may be right. But isn't it a good thing to know something new? Isn't it a good thing to be corrected of any false assumptions/ knowledge that we may hold? For example, pretend that I think rocking back and forth in my chair is enough exercise to make my body flexible. Then I watch your video, and learn that I was mistaken, that it takes more than just rocking back and forth. Now that's good, right? Isn't it also good to know of other facts too? Like how to make healthy chocolate chip cookies. Or how to cook a healthy snack in a mug, in a microwave. Or in this case, the particulars of the McDonalds case. So, why all the hostility? Again, I apologize for the "long, indignant comment" that precipitated this whole exchange.

[@gmbfit]

Please don't conflate annoyance at your comment with an anti-knowledge stance. I'm assuming you're smarter than that, so don't try to pin the hostility on me after your opening track. I'm sure you're all kinds of nice, but this discussion is going nowhere. Apology accepted. Let's move on.